I recently came across a cliché that took me a bit by surprise, “The difference between a master and an amateur is a master has failed more times than an amateur has even tried.”  While it is basic stuff for all sorts of skill and attitude development, what surprised me was the non-conventional wisdom of that cliché that suddenly (but not for the first time) came to mind fifty years after I was first introduced to the principle ; the unconventionality of the learning and wisdom that takes place in the process of moving from an amateur to a master.  Note, “the process...” 

 

It seems like the only thing to learn from failure these days is how not to do something.  What happened to the complex web of persistence, outside-the-box thinking,  belief strengthening, rejection management, self-denial, timing, emotional impact, practicality, and lessons learned among others that teach us how to navigate life of which a failure is only one event in and that are a part of moving from an amateur to a master.  Historically, life processes have been just as important than the end result and, as most of us who have been around the block a few times know, sometimes more important.

 

In our contemporary hurried and efficiency-oriented mindsets, it seems like the only thing now that differentiates a master from an amateur is the level of perfection they can produce frequently measured in less time, less money,   less stress, and less errors.  Efficiency is not the be all end all.  We are just beginning to learn the obsession with efficiency is often at the expense of resiliency and stability.  Technology aggravates this by feeding us with all sorts of lines that a faster, easier, self-oriented product will make life easier and us happier.  Sure, just like email gave us more time to do what we really wanted to do.  At what cost though and where are the wise that historicallly we have relied upon to see this and remind us that most of life is more than just we experience with our senses or can be measured.

 

Despite the modern day inclination for collective and individual power, historically, sages and elders used to be the people that kept the train from going off the tracks taking younger ones through challenging perspective-changing initiations.  They did this by guiding the young ones into learning, among other things, that life wasn’t about them and their satisfaction (how un-western).  Deepening joy and satisfaction came as one grew through life’s challenges.  Ups and downs had meaning.  Somehow, we now we think that all there is to life must be achieved by early adulthood: titles, salaries, recognitions, etc., challenges be damned as we hurry to what we think we see and want right in front of us.  In other words, we’re defined more by what we’re achieving than what we can bring to someone else’s life, either family or culture by what we have learned through our challenges. 

 

The sages and wise ones have been replaced with the technologically literate and idealists.  (I occasionally wonder about where we’re going when the world is being led by twenty-something’s with oodles of money and insufficient life-experience based wisdom.  Is there anything more to life than achieving?  Do they even know how to know if they are powered by it?  However, and giving the appearance of speaking out of both sides of my mouth now, the younger generation does have something to teach an older generation about work/life balance but is it based on wisdom or practicality.)

 

As leaders, we need to get away from solely guiding people on how to achieve and teach them how to learn, contribute, and see beyond themselves.  We need to teach that what we learn from failures broadens our understandings not just denying achievement.  Ego-satisfaction is only temporary and shallow and it helps us to know when we're controlled by this.  Processes and experiences have important meaning.   I know of a few fire service training officers that teach about what to do when something goes wrong or what to learn from failures besides what not to do, but they are not many.   We need to teach a wisdom tension of achievement that satisfies but that will also creates a deeper yearning that will never be deeply satisfying.  If life is only about achieving, one will never have enough as the goal line keeps changing. As leaders, we need to step up (and maybe correct our own thinking) and begin thinking again about how to grow people into thinking beyond themselves and contributing to the greater good.  We need to develop and appreciate sages and leadership elders within our organizations that help people and the organization thrive, not solely for what they can achieve, but how they can contribute to the meaningful lives of others, our peers, subordinates, and customers.  Leaders need to think differently.  #fireleadership #firechiefs #leadershipdevelopment #leadershipwisdom